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We can’t help but feel haunted by the ghost of Michael Hutchence.
First, it was the release in late December of the self-admitted ’80s arena rock-inspired new single from Ryan Adams, “Do You Still Love Me?”
Now Arcade Fire is drawing on the energy of INXS’ synth-pop styles with their first recording in nearly four years.
“I Give You Power,” a collaboration with gospel queen Mavis Staples, was released a day before the inauguration, last week, of President Donald Trump – and according to frontman Win Butler, that was no coincidence.
“I talked to Mavis last night and she said, ‘Now more than ever we just need to hold onto each other,'” he told Beat 1’s Zane Lowe. “For us it’s a feeling of solidarity—to not feel powerless and focus on what we can do as individuals and try to do our part.”
All proceeds from the single’s online sales are being donated to the ACLU.
Politics aside, we’re excited to include “I Give You Power” on this week’s New Tracks on the Trail roster. With their fifth LP in the final stages of production, we hope this won’t be the only time Arcade Fire makes our New Tracks list this year.
In the meantime, if this isn’t enough to quench your thirst, the band last week released a DVD featuring film and concert footage from their 2014 Reflektor tour. Get your copy HERE.
Also on this week’s New Tracks lineup:
-We’ve always been big fans of outlaw country, but we’re more excited than ever to experience the sub-genre from a female’s perspective.
Enter now Nikki Lane, who is set to release her third studio album, Highway Queen, in February.
Born in South Carolina and already establishing her totem on the Easter Island of country giants in Nashville, Lane gave us a preview of her new work earlier this month with the single, “Jackpot.”
Described by a Rolling Stone Magazine critic as a “fireball of a song that sounds like a cowgirl on the loose in Sin City,” the track was written about her boyfriend, fellow musician and album co-producer Jonathan Tyler.
Starting tomorrow we’ll add some local fuel to the fireball. We can’t wait to see how much it scorches.
Check out a brief artist profile of Lane – and the music video for another track from Highway Queen – HERE.
-The only artist to outpace Ed Sheeran’s album sales in 2014 was fellow Brit Adele.
But this year, with Adele seemingly nowhere near releasing anything anytime soon, looks like it could be Sheeran’s chance at redemption.
In fact, with two tracks from Sheeren’s coming album, Divide, already out, Sheeran is already knocking Adele out of the record books – for most first-day Spotify listens of all time (7.9 million, for those keeping tally).
We’ll give you a taste of the new 12-track effort tomorrow, but trust us – you can expect to hear a lot, lot more from Sheeran in the next few months.
-One of our most anticipated shows of the season ahead happens Feb. 25, when Dawes takes the stage at The Wilma.
The high-energy folk rock group from Southern California are touring in support of their latest release, We’re All Gonna Die, which was released in September.
Produced by former bandmate Blake Mills, the album – Dawes’ fifth – features a slew of guest appearances, including Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes, and, well, Mandy Moore. To be fair, she’s dating the band’s lead singer and songwriter, Taylor Goldsmith.
AllMusic critic Matt Collar compared the band’s latest evolution to that of Wilco in a decade-plus ago.
“Dawes take all the poignant twang that make up their previous work and imbue it with a tactile, delicately experimental vibe on a set of songs that are as imaginative and catchy as ever,” he wrote.
Tune in tomorrow to hear exactly what he’s talking about, and don’t forget to pick up tickets to the show HERE.
-Finally, we’ll preview a track from the debut album of French singer Jain.
Zanaka was also released in 2015, but it hasn’t fully taken root stateside until recently. Influenced by her native country’s techno vibe and infused with the rhythm and melody of Africa – where she spent much of her youth – Jain has drawn comparisons to Bjork and Florence Welch.
There ya have it – another Tuesday, another batch of New Tracks on the Trail! Thanks as always to Rockin’ Rudy’s for sponsoring this weekly segment!
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